Anthony Sher's Primo Opens at the Music Box, July 11

By: BWW News Desk Jun. 28, 2005

Primo, the acclaimed National Theatre of Great Britain production starring Anthony Sher in the title role of the Italian writer, chemist and Holocaust survivor, will begin previews on Broadway Friday, July 7th at the Music Box Theatre (239 West 45 Street). Presented by Bill Kenwright and Thelma Holt, Primo, which is based on Levi's memoir If This Is A Man, adapted for the stage by Sher and directed by Richard Watson, will open on Monday, July 11th to run through August 7th for a total of 32 performances.

Levi wrote If This Is A Man in 1947, as an account of the time he spent in the Auschwitz concentration camp during the final year of World War II; the book was published in the U.S. under the title Survival in Auschwitz. Sher's adaptation premiered last fall at London's National Theatre to critical acclaim and capacity audiences, with Time Out/London describing Sher's as "a passionate performance that will cling in the memory, never entirely to be shaken away." Following its London premiere, the South African native performed the piece in his native Cape Town at the Baxter Theatre before returning to England this winter to recreate his performance for another sold out engagement in the West End.

Primo is designed by Hildegard Bechtler with lighting by Paul Pyant, sound by Rich Walsh and music by Jonathan Goldstein.

Sher is well-known from his many performances on the London stage with the Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre and in the West End. He made his Broadway debut and garnered a Tony nomination for Best Actor in a Play, for his performance in Pam Gems' Stanley. His film credits include roles in Yanks, Superman II, Mrs. Brown, Shakespeare in Love and Churchill: The Hollywood Years. He is also the author of the play I.D. and works of fiction and non-fiction. His most recent book is Primo Time, an account of his bringing Primo to the stage. He was knighted in 2000.

Wilson is an Associate Director of London's Royal Court Theatre. In addition to the Royal Court, he has directed many productions in London at the Bush, Lyric Hammersmith, Hampstead Theatre, as well as the West End production of Stephen Churchett's Tom and Clem starring Michael Gambon and Alec McCowen. He has directed as well at the Oxford Playhouse, where he was Associate Director, and at the Chichester Festival. As an actor, he has been seen in the films A Passage to India, Gulliver's Travels, Prick Up Your Ears and The Man Who Knew Too Little.

Primo will be performed Tuesday through Saturday evenings at 8 PM, with matinees Saturday at 2 PM and Sundays at 3 PM; the Sunday, July 10 performance will begin at 5 PM and that there is no performance on Tuesday, July 12. Tickets, priced at $86.25 and $76.25, are available at www.telecharge.com--(212) 239-6200--or at the box office beginning Monday, June 20.

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Anthony Sher's Primo Opens at the Music Box, July 11

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